By Sally Fahey
The Inky’s Keith Pompey is no great shakes as a reporter or a writer.
He “covers” the Sixers and constantly gets beat on news breaks by Woj and Shams.
But he hit the nail on the head this morning, the fourth anniversary of one of the worst trades in Sixers history:
Today marks the four-year anniversary of a disastrous draft-day trade by the 76ers.
Back on June 21, 2018, the Sixers selected Villanova’s Mikal Bridges with the No. 10 pick in the NBA draft. And like the Sixers’ fan base, the Great Valley High School product could not have been happier.
But 38 minutes later, the Sixers traded Bridges to the Phoenix Suns for Zhaire Smith, the 16th overall pick. The Sixers also received the Miami Heat’s 2021 first-round pick in the trade. The Sixers were always interested in Smith for his elite athleticism, just not at No. 10. And his fate in Philadelphia was doomed shortly after it began.
Due to a failure to remain healthy and live up to unrealistic expectations, Smith played in just 13 career games before being traded to the Detroit Pistons on Nov. 23, 2020, for reserve center Tony Bradley.
In four years with the Suns, Bridges is averaging 11.3 PPG and 3.9 RPG, not to mention making the All-NBA defensive second-team
